


Blankets and Comforters

by UranianProcyonid



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-02
Updated: 2017-11-02
Packaged: 2019-01-26 01:26:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12545748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UranianProcyonid/pseuds/UranianProcyonid
Summary: Genji experiences sleep paralysis. Zenyatta helps him calm down.





	Blankets and Comforters

**Author's Note:**

> my husband has dealt with sleep paralysis, but i haven't, so my info is secondhand, but my empathy is 100% here. it's normally a very scary experience and i wish you all a soft zen-friend who can help you calm down when you're having a bad time.
> 
> i may edit this at some point, i stayed up late to write this and i'm barely awake and i'm not sure if it'll look good once i've slept but i hope you like it anyways. i'm so sleepy i can't quite tell if my sentences made sense, actually. i better sleep before i start drooling on this keyboard.

Genji was awake. At least, he was pretty sure he was. He was... probably awake, and he was stuck to his bed like he'd been glued there. He could see. The curtain at his window couldn't, thankfully, block all of the moonlight. But even though he could see, he couldn't figure out why he was stuck. He felt heavy. His limbs weighed tons. His skull felt like it was filled with lead. What the _hell_ could be happening? Genji's breathing sped up. No one was in his room. He saw no one, heard nothing, and felt no presence nearby. Was some there some malfunction between his brain and the inorganic connections throughout his body? Was he poisoned? Could this be a dream?

The man inhaled deeply through his nose and held that breath. _Calm down. Keep breathing normally,_ Genji thought to himself. He slowly released his breath and looked around the room to his left, where his head was turned. Everything was in place. His weapons lay exactly where he left them on the box under the window. His faceplate sat on his small nightstand, on top of his book, not budged a millimeter. Everything was normal. The only thing that stood out was the deep, heavy shadow in the corner of the room the moon's gaze couldn't light. The shadow did not move, but... Genji could almost see a shape in it. It almost... looked like someone was sitting there, sitting on the floor in the corner nearest his left foot. But that couldn't be! None of Genji's senses were detecting any form of life nearby, not even omnic. No one was around. So, why... why did it look like someone was in the corner? Why did it look like there were silhouetted feet on the floor, arms rested on knees, and a head leaned back against the wall? He could feel his heart beating harder. He could feel it pushing at his ribs. He felt trapped. He felt like only his heart and lungs had a chance of escaping this prison of blankets and gravity with how hard they were working. He had to get up. He had to know if there was some _thing_ in his room. He had to _go_.

Genji fought. He strained his muscles, he strained his mind, and he strained his wiring. He tried first to lift his head, but that proved too great a chasm to leap this early on. He had to start small. One finger. Left pinky. He could do this. Genji took in a shaking breath, held it for a few seconds, and released it slowly. Just one finger.

After a terrible whole minute, the pinky moved. _Yes!_ Genji thought with excitement. _Progress! Next finger._

With each new finger moved, Genji felt the tiniest bit lighter. The tiniest bit more relieved. The tiniest bit more frustrated that he still wasn't completely free. When both his arms were useful, he started kneading the blanket. He was afraid to lose the ground he'd gained, so he squeezed his blankets tightly. He worked on his feet, his legs, and eventually, his head. How long must it have taken? Genji couldn't tell. But he could push himself up now. He could get out of this bed. And although he was in a hurry to get up, he was worried if he moved too quickly, he might get dizzy or have weak limbs and fall. The last thing he wanted was to collapse on the ground after he'd finally stopped being horizontal. So he slowly, carefully, dragged his feet toward the edge of the bed while pushing himself upright. He kept his eyes locked on the shadow in the corner, and when he was able to stand, he walked to it. No sound came from it. No light changed it. Genji reached out his hand, but felt only air. There was nothing.

Taking another relieving breath, Genji stood upright and shivered. He was certainly awake now, if he hadn't been before. He felt much better knowing he was no longer stuck, and that he did not have a monster in his room. But his heart still beat quickly. He looked down at his hand in the moonlight and could see it was shaking. Genji had to wonder if it would be better to go back to sleep and try to forget about this or to stay awake and prevent the chance it could happen again. He didn't wonder for long. He didn't trust himself to sleep again just yet. He needed to move. He needed... something. In the past, Genji had gone to Hanzo's room when he'd had nightmares. Hanzo always fussed at being woken, but he let Genji stay in his room for the rest of the night. Now, Genji couldn't go to Hanzo. They were thousands of miles apart. But... Zenyatta might not mind being woken up for a little while. His mind made up, he grabbed his faceplate and head scarf and headed out.

...

"Genji, what are you doing up so late?" Zenyatta asked gently, opening his door wide for the man to come inside. "Have you been unable to sleep?"

"I... I did sleep some," Genji said, kneeling down near Zenyatta's bed. "But I think I woke up before my sleep cycle ended, because..." He had to pause and breathe deeply again. Zenyatta had come to sit beside him, and reached a shining hand to rest it softly on Genji's shoulder. "I woke up unable to move. It took me so long to get up that I'm surprised the sun didn't beat me to it. And... I may have hallucinated? I'm not sure, but I thought I saw someone in the shadows of my room, but there was no one there." Zenyatta continued to look at Genji, his head tilted a bit. He waited patiently for his pupil to finish. Genji swallowed and pulled off his faceplate. "I know that there is no danger, but I cannot go back to sleep tonight. I came to ask if you'd permit me to sit in here for a while, just so I'm not... alone with my thoughts."

"Oh Genji, of course you can stay here. Why don't you sit on the bed with me? We can talk about this if you'd like, or just sit quietly. Whatever you need, just ask." Zenyatta stood up and reached for Genji's hand. Genji let his teacher help him up and lead him to the hard bed Zenyatta used. The omnic took his blankets and wrapped them around his student's shoulders before sitting beside him. He waited to see if Genji would try to talk more, or if he would want to just enjoy the presence of a trusted friend. The amount of silence hinted at the latter.

Genji looked up at his teacher after a long moment. "Thank you for being so kind to me. I'm... I'm sorry for having disturbed your rest."

"One night's rest for me does not hold a candle to the importance of making sure you feel safe in your home here." Zenyatta placed his hand on Genji's, able to feel the slight tremble still there. "And besides, you need rest more than I do. I can recharge in only a few hours. You're losing more sleep right now than I am." The monk leaned in a bit and let his forehead bump into Genji's. "If you need someone to watch over you during a difficult time such as this, I'd gladly sacrifice my recharge time for you."

The cyborg felt his face heat up at the closeness and the offer. "If that's the case, please allow me to stay here until it's time for breakfast." Zenyatta leaned back and nodded. "And if it's not too much to ask, I have one more request." Zenyatta didn't say anything, so Genji asked, "Is it alright if I hug you?"

Zenyatta adjusted his sitting position and scooted closer to his student. He reached his sturdy arms out and pulled Genji into a warm hug, which was returned to him eagerly. "We can stay like this as long as you need," Zenyatta whispered against Genji's shoulder. The cyborg pressed his forehead onto Zenyatta's shoulder to hide his face, and he breathed in the warm air held between them. The monk rubbed Genji's back through the blankets he wore and held him close. _Someone like Genji with such an active and energetic personality must have felt so terrible in that kind of position,_ Zenyatta thought. _I must make a note to look up information about sleep disorders later today._ In the moment, Zenyatta listened to Genji's breathing. He watched the rise of his back with his inhales, and he watched the the slow relaxing of Genji's shoulders. He felt so proud of his student and friend, for trusting him so much. And now, he let Genji fall asleep to the faint humming of his core processors and decided that when he woke up, he'd take him out for breakfast.

**Author's Note:**

> lmk what u think, i need lots of constructive advice


End file.
